Universal Design in the Built Environment

Universal Design in the Virtual Environment

Universal Design in the Learning Environment

GUDC in Action

News

Jason P. Harris is joining the staff at the Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University, as a Research Associate, working to advance the civic, economic, and social participation of people with disabilities around the globe.

BBI Chairman and University Professor Peter Blanck said today in Bloomberg news in regard to “blind workers” and “online hiring systems: "Attitudes about inclusion is the real problem," Blanck said. Jobs-page "accessibility is just a symptom."

As part of GUDC’s living laboratory approach, I interviewed Granite Development Company president Mark Congel about residential Universal Design’s return on investment. Congel has developed many properties in the Syracuse, New York including the universally designed apartment complex, Destiny Arms. We discussed financial and non-financial ROI as well as the impact Universal Design has had on Destiny Arms. This conversation pinpoints some of the unique benefits UD offers developers and builders.

As part of our ongoing study and observation of the GUDC certified Mary Free Bed YMCA I decided to check in with the project’s principal architect, Michael Perry to get an update on how Universal Design has impacted this particular YMCA and why Universal Design (UD) makes sense from a return on investment perspective.

With the global rise in the attention to accessibility, many countries have promulgated laws and regulations on accessible standards in public buildings and facilities. However, the question of how to implement them has remained largely unsolved.